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Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Women's Sexuality and Animal Spirit Guides

One of the greatest gifts this past spring was my first group counseling program ever. Despite opposition from my school professors, and incredulity from my grande dame certified sexuality therapist supervisor, I put together a group on women's sexuality and animal spirit guides.

And the group rocked.

I had five clients for eight weeks, and we explored the ways patriarchy limits women's sexuality, how using animal spirit guides can help us explore our sexuality in new ways, and we made awesome artwork week after week. We made wildly patterned quilts; we made plaster body casts; we made message bottles with mason jars and finger painted and collages!

As you do.

The fun of group counseling is partly its challenge. I had Pagan clients and Christian clients and Unitarian Universalist clients in this first group. Some members had no idea if they could identify with animal totems, and some wanted to find their own personal spirit guide. Not everyone wanted to finger paint. Not everyone felt comfortable with exploring sexism. (Happily, everyone loved bodycasting!) Yet after a few weeks we were more than a group of strangers; we were a supportive group of friends finding new ways to think about ourselves and our lives.

And this officially marks a combining of my blogs and life! This puja blog to Bridget and my coaching and soon to be counseling blog all reflect different aspects of my dedication to St. Bridget. St. Bridget has led me constantly in my work in counseling and coaching, whether I walk a client to a disability office on a college campus, or whether I'm helping women explore spirituality. St. Bridget inspires my art, my work and my worship.

And I believe she would have been happy as can be with my first counseling group. We were women of many religions, orientations, totems, goals.